We’re Picking Winners For Every Week 6 Game Of The NFL Season

There’s a lot to talk about in the National Football League as we’re nearly one-third of the way into the season. The Kansas City Chiefs are considered by most to be the best team in the NFL since they are the only 5-0 team left standing. After them, the Eagles, Packers, and Panthers sit at 4-1 while the Broncos and Falcons are at 3-1. All of those teams have great offenses that are tough to stop.

Last week also reminded us of how brutal the NFL season can be since Houston Texans star defensive linemen JJ Watt suffered a left tibial plateau fracture (broken leg) that will cause him to miss the rest of the year. New York Giants star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. also suffered a broken ankle and he’s out for the year. It was tough to watch that happen. It’s also a reminder of how quickly one team’s momentum can change if a star player goes down. Also if you had Beckham on your fantasy team, good luck the rest of the way. It won’t be easy losing a first-round pick like him.

Last Week’s Results:

7-7 Straight Up (44-33 Season)
7-7 Point Spread (34-43 Season)

Week five was pretty tough in terms of close games, so going .500 straight up and against the spread is okay with me.

Note: The point spreads I use come from VegasInsider. All times listed are in the Eastern Time zone.

The following teams have byes this week: Buffalo, Cincinnati, Dallas, and Seattle.

Philadelphia (4-1) @ Carolina (4-1) -3 [8:25pm THU]
Great game coming up on Thursday night with two of the best teams in the NFC. The Panthers are showing that they are back in 2015 form when they finished with the best record in the NFL and Quarterback Cam Newton was the league MVP. After a bit of a rough start, Newton is coming off two monster games and I expect him to have a third big game against an Eagles defense that has improved a lot, but perhaps hasn’t had a road test as tough as this yet. I’m not disrespecting the Eagles by saying that. It’s just reality that the Eagles haven’t played a great team yet other than the Chiefs yet and they lost that game. If the Eagles and QB Carson Wentz win this game, they will prove they belong in the conversation among the best teams in the league. For this game, give me the Panthers to win a high scoring affair.

The Pick: Carolina 31-24

Cleveland (0-5) @ Houston (2-3) -9.5 [1:00pm SUN]

It’s been fun watching the Texans in the last few weeks with rookie QB Deshaun Watson having some monster games with WRs DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller. Watson is so accurate on those deep balls. The defense needs to play better and lucky for them they face the lowly Browns. This feels like a blowout to me.

The Pick: Houston 37-13

New England (3-2) -9.5 @ NY Jets (3-2) [1:00pm SUN]

The Jets are overachieving right now as they sit at 3-2, but to their credit, they are playing very hard for coach Todd Bowles. I like some of the things they are doing on offense with veteran QB Josh McCown playing better than most people thought. Good thing for them is the Patriots defense stinks right now, so the Jets should be able to score. Problem is they won’t score enough. Patriots QB Tom Brady got banged up a bit last game, so that’s something to keep an eye on. I think he’ll be fine, though. Pats win, but I’m taking the Jets to cover.

The Pick: New England 30-23

Miami (2-2) @ Atlanta (3-1) -11.5 [1:00pm SUN]

Miami is averaging a league-low 10.25 points per game and we’re supposed to think they are going to outscore the high scoring Falcons in the ATL? Not happening, my friends. Here’s hoping WR Julio Jones has a big game because he’s been disappointing from a fantasy football perspective. Perhaps they will realize he should be doing more and feed him the ball more coming off the bye week. Hey Dolphins QB Jay Cutler, enjoy the paycheck. I don’t blame you for coming out of retirement because of what you are getting paid, but you should at least look like you care more.

The Pick: Atlanta 31-10

Detroit (3-2) @ New Orleans (2-2) -5 [1:00pm SUN]

Picking against the Saints at home isn’t something I like to do. They lost their only home game this year because it was against the Patriots. This time, I like the Saints because they traded away RB Adrian Peterson, who is clearly past his prime. They’ve got a weapon in RB Alvin Kamara and I feel like he’s going to be unleashed in this game. This feels like a shootout and even with an over/under number at 50, I’m going with the over.

The Pick: New Orleans 34-27

Green Bay (4-1) -3 @ Minnesota (3-2) [1:00pm SUN]

I believe in the Packers, but I also believe in divisional home teams that are underdogs that aren’t actually bad teams. The Vikings have some uncertainty at QB with Sam Bradford injured and Case Keenum reminding people why he’s a backup. I love that Vikings defense, though. I think the Vikings will be able to defend against the great Packers QB Aaron Rodgers as well as anybody. I also think the Packers run game may struggle in this game, which could hurt Rodgers ability to pick apart the defense. Plus, I’m tired of picking all the favorites. Give me the Vikes at home with a late field goal to win what is a huge game for them.

The Pick: Minnesota 23-20

Chicago (1-4) @ Baltimore (3-2) -6.5 [1:00pm SUN]

It’s hard to like the young, unproven Bears offense on the road against what is one of the best defenses in the NFL in the Ravens. Then again, I thought the Ravens would shut down the lowly Jaguars offense a few weeks ago and they were ripped apart, so who knows? I just think the Ravens will dominate this game and they should score enough to win comfortably with QB Joe Flacco doing enough to win. I like the Ravens as one of my best bets too.

The Pick: Baltimore 24-10

San Francisco (0-5) @ Washington (2-2) -10 [1:00pm SUN]

This should be a boring game to watch that should be a dominant win for Washington. The Niners are similar to last year when they won two games. They’ll probably win two again this year, but I don’t have the confidence to pick them in this game. Big game for QB Kirk Cousins and I hope TE Jordan Reed is active because he could pick up some big yards here too.

The Pick: Washington 31-13

LA Rams (3-2) @ Jacksonville (3-2) -2.5 [4:05pm SUN]

Tough game for me to pick as a Rams fan because I saw the Jags absolutely shut down the Steelers last week in what was a road game for the Jags. Offensively, the Jags kept it simple by running the ball heavily with rookie RB Leonard Fournette, who is doing a great job of moving the chains and should have success against the Rams run defense that is just average. On the other side of the ball, the Rams run game with RB Todd Gurley is a key to success. Gurley was shut down by the Seahawks last week and the offense sputtered. This week, the Jags may have a tough time stopping Gurley and that’s why I’m going with my Rams to find a way to win on the road. Two young teams on the rise.

The Pick: LA Rams 23-17

Tampa Bay (2-2) -2 @ Arizona (2-3) [4:05pm SUN]

There are issues with both teams, but I think the Bucs are better. They had a 19-14 home loss to the Patriots where their defense looked like they were going to pull out the victory. The problem is that QB Jameis Winston looks like he has regressed in year three. I’m interested in the WR Mike Evans vs. CB Patrick Peterson matchup. If Peterson can stop him then Winston needs to spread the ball around. I’m leaning towards the Bucs, but it’s a tough call.

The Pick: Tampa Bay 24-20

Pittsburgh (3-2) @ Kansas City (5-0) -4.5 [4:25pm SUN]

I picked against the Chiefs last week and I immediately regretted it after about five minutes of their game. I won’t do it again especially because Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger looks like age has caught up to him and he’s not producing at the level he has in the past. Five picks last week? Brutal. It just feels like the Steelers offense isn’t on the same page right now and that’s a bad sign going into a tough road environment like the Chiefs. If you make mistakes against the Chiefs, they are going to capitalize with QB Alex Smith having what might be the best year of his career while RB Kareem Hunt, WR Tyreek Hill and TE Travis Kelce have shown they can bust out a big play at any time. Look for the Chiefs to continue to roll here.

The Pick: Kansas City 31-24

LA Chargers (1-4) @ Oakland (2-3) -3 [4:25pm SUN]

Congrats to the lowly Chargers for finally winning a game. It looks like QB Derek Carr will be back at QB for the Raiders, which should lead to them getting on the right track. I can see them getting on a winning streak soon and finishing with double-digit wins because there’s too much talent there even with WR Amari Cooper having a terrible year. That spread feels way too low to me too.

The Pick: Oakland 37-24

NY Giants (0-5) @ Denver (3-1) -12 [8:30pm SUN]

The Giants may end up with the worst record in the NFL this year. I didn’t see it coming, but it’s happening due to injuries to their entire WR group and no run game. The defense isn’t doing much either. This has Broncos blowout written all over it.

The Pick: Denver 27-6

Indianapolis (2-3) @ Tennessee (2-3) -2 [8:30pm MON]

The status of Titans QB Marcus Mariota is up in the air, so I’m using another line. This feels like a game where the Titans are going to run the ball 40-45 times with their RB duo of Murray and Henry while the Colts defense just doesn’t have the personnel to stop them. The Colts two wins were nailbiters over the Browns and Niners. They are an awful team. Titans should crush them at home in primetime.

The Pick: Tennessee 34-10

Those are some brutal Sunday night and Monday night games. I know they weren’t that way when the NFL set them up, but they will be tough to watch.

My Fave Five Bets Of The Week
It was a pretty, pretty good week five with a 3-2 record thanks to the Ravens win, Packers/Cowboys having a shootout and the Eagles dominating the Cardinals. I missed on the Steelers and Giants, both of whom played terribly.

Last week: 3-2 (Season 10-15)

Here are my five favorite bets for this week.

@ Houston -9.5 Cleveland
Detroit @ New Orleans OVER 50
@ Baltimore -6.5 Chicago – I still like Baltimore if the line goes over 7, but I really love it at 6.5 points.
@ Oakland -3 LA Chargers
@ Tennessee -2 Indianapolis

There are a lot of games this week where bad teams are on the road facing what I think are the good teams, so that’s why I’m going with a lot of home teams and favorites this week.

That’s all for this week. I’ll be back for more next week. Enjoy the games.